Ezekiel Bible Study: March 12, 2025

The recording started. Okay, so tonight we are going to be in Ezekiel 38. Ezekiel 38 and 39 are really, really interesting chapters. The world, if you listen to anything on YouTube and you see Ezekiel 38 prophecies, they probably have it wrong. They're going to talk about these being scriptures that could be fulfilled in the little nation of Israel in the Middle East today.

But they are scriptures, and these are prophecies for after the return of Jesus Christ.

Before we get into it, just kind of let me remind you of where we've been over the last few weeks, because we have been at the time after the return of Jesus Christ. In Ezekiel 36, we read about the time as we have in other times where Jesus Christ is talking about bringing everyone back from being scattered around the world. He's going to bring them back to the Promised Land.

37, last week we talked about the Valley of Dry Bones and how Israel would be resurrected. It's a picture of the resurrection of all of mankind. Chapter 37 is a physical resurrection, and we talked about the first resurrection being the better resurrection and a resurrection to eternal life, immortality.

That's for those of us that God has called today, that our firstfruits and that live our lives in this world, learning to follow Him, denying Himself, and letting His Holy Spirit lead us to become like Him. We read about the time we compared Israel itself, the land, how dead it was, and how when God calls us, we become. He puts life into us. And in chapter 37, we read for the second chapter in a row about how David would be king over all of Israel at the time that Christ returns.

So in the chapters from chapter 33 on, we're talking about the time after the return of Jesus Christ in this section of Ezekiel. And chapters 38 and 39 fall into that same section. Now, after 38 and 39, we're getting into the third temple that people talk about, the Millennial Temple, the Ezekiel Temple, some call it. So that'll be chapter 40. That's probably next week. We'll get into that a little bit, not tonight. But in chapter 38 and 39, as we go through it, I'll point out some of those things that show you that this is a future.

This is not talking about today, because the words that are in here, the visages that God gives us in here, clearly are not in the age that we're in today. It is for a future time. So with that, let's begin here in chapter 38 in verse 1. And we're going to see some familiar words. Well, God has been talking in the prior chapters about bringing Israel back and resurrecting them and David being the king over them.

And they're going to live in honor of God and in His way for the rest of the time. In chapter 38, we go back to where God is calling out some enemies of Israel. In chapter 38 and verse 1, it says, "'The word of the Lord came to Ezekiel, saying, Son of man, set your face against God.'" And when we see words like, "'Set your face against," God is against these people, right?

They are usually, when we read those words, these are enemies of Israel. When we were back in chapter 33 and God was talking about how He was going to be cleaning up all those areas, those surrounding nations of Israel. There were seven nations we talked about. "'Set your face against them, and then later on I'm against you.'" So we know Gog. Gog is an enemy of Israel, we're going to see here, even after the return of Jesus Christ. And we learned something about the millennium, when Christ returns, that not everyone is going to be automatically in favor of Jesus Christ and converted and going to be following His way.

There are still these things that are hidden in people's hearts that they don't change, and we're going to see that here in chapter 38. "'Son of man, set your face against Gog, of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshach, and Tubal, and prophesy against him. And say,' verse 3, "'Thus says the Lord God, behold, I'm against you, O Gog, the prince of Rosh, Meshach, and Tubal.'" So let me put up a map here, so that we're kind of familiar of where we are.

I think you can see that. So this is kind of the general area of the world that we're in. I don't think this map is entirely accurate as far as where all these places are that are there. Let me... I don't know how to admit people when I'm in the screen. Hold on a minute, but oh, here we go.

But you can see these areas that we've shown. Gog and Magog are usually considered to be Russia. You see Russia up there. It extends even further east on that map than what you see. We're going to talk a little bit about Persia and Kush and Persia and Ethiopia and Libya here. You're going to see Togarmah. You see where Israel is right there in the center of that map and Gomer up in that area. So you really have the Eastern European nations over into India and Pakistan as well.

And in a little bit, I'm going to read through some verses. Then I'll put up something from our Bible, the UCG Bible commentary that talks about where all these nations are in words. But this gives you a general area of the world we're talking about. So God is talking against all these people. Gog, Magog, Togarmah, and everything. And he says in verse 4, I will turn you around. I'll put hooks into your jaws, and I will lead you out with all your armies, horses, and horsemen, all splendidly clothed, a great company with bucklers and shields, all of them handling swords.

So God knows what's in people's hearts, and he's going to lead them out against Israel, the land of Israel that has been re-inhabited by those people who have been scattered around the world that Christ brings back at the time of his return.

And here they are. They're going to be faced with this army, literal army, that's going to be coming from the east there in the north to conquer them, just like in the days before Jesus Christ returned. That's what's in their heart. Verse 5, it says, Persia, Ethiopia, and Libya. You see, those around the map are with them, all of them with shield and helmet. You have these enemies of Israel who even today are not fans of Israel, the little nation of Israel, right?

They still have that hatred in their hearts. Remember in chapter 35, God rid the Middle East, those seven surrounding nations around Israel. He cleared them out, and here we have, further away from Israel, these other nations who still don't submit to God and still don't like his people, and they're going to come after Israel as well, after the return of Jesus Christ, not later in the millennium, but early on in the millennium. We'll see that in a little bit, because in Revelation 20, it talks about a time where Gog and Magog, again, at the end of the millennium, come against Israel.

Verse 6, Gomer, Gomer and all its troops, the house of Togarmah, from the far north and all its troops. Many people are with you. Many people are with you, God says.

That's the number of people. They like savings time. They like savings time began last weekend, so it is full daylight here. It's like they were in the daytime after all those months of night. So good to have all of you with us who are just joining us right now. So you have all this group of people from all those areas you see on that map that are going to converge, going to converge on Israel, God's protected people. Now let me take this map down for a moment and put up another one here. This is from the Bible commentary that talks about where the church teaches where this Gog and Magog are. It says, so rather than present-day Ethiopian Libya in Africa, it appears much more likely that Ezekiel 38.5 is speaking of the people of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka. Consider, then, the vast hordes of India, China, Indonesia, Russia, Turkestan, and more combined, an unimaginable force and staggeringly formed a foe to be sure, but no match at all for mighty God. So when you think of all those nations and all that population, and they are all against Israel, and they are there forming a coalition to come against God's people, it's an astounding thing when you think about it. When I looked up the population, today's populations of those areas that it's talking about, it's 4.8 billion people. 4.8 billion people. So even if 90% of those people die during the Great Tribulation, you still have over 4 million people who would be coming against Israel at this time. And so when it says later on about how it's just a swarm, it's just a swarm of people, you can imagine. So if you're Israel, again, you think about this people. We're going to read that they're in unwalled villages, not where the nation of Israel is today, in unwalled villages. And they're going to be seeing all these hordes come down. They have nothing to do but trust in God. Over and over in the Bible, we read about His people just trusting in God. You think of the time of the year we're in, and the time of the year we're in, and Israel with its back against the Red Sea, God marches them out of Egypt. They go to the Red Sea, they have no place to turn. The only thing that can happen to them is God saves them. And if He doesn't save them, they'll just be picked off, by the Egyptians, one by one. You read in Revelation 12 about the Church as Christ is taking it to the place where it'll be nurtured for time, times, and half a time. And you see that this flood is following them, which we commonly say is an army, coming after them. They're defenseless people. They don't have weapons. They don't have nuclear arms. And what has happened?

He opens the ground that that army is covered up. We learn complete faith in God. And that's what the people here are going to learn as well. God will protect. He protects. He protects His people.

Yes, yes, Jeremy. I was wondering something. I've heard that Meshech is the city of Moscow present day. Is that true? Meshech, I think that that is right. Yeah, Moscow. Moscow derives from that name. Okay, do we have any proof for that? We probably do. I don't have it, though, at my fingertips. If you go back into the commentary, the UCG Bible commentary, it is pretty extensive in where it talks about Ezekiel 38, the identity of these nations. So if you go back there, I think you'll find a lot of information. I just put all that detail down. Yeah, I'm pretty sure I also saw in worldwide articles that they said it was that. Okay, very good. Very good. Okay, so where were we then? We were in verse 7. Prepare yourself, God says, prepare yourself and be ready. You and all your companies that are gathered about you, and be a guard for them. God will be their guard. He will be the one watching over them. They don't have weapons. They're living in a peaceful state, free of war. Remember what it said in Isaiah 2. You'll beat your war implements into plowshares. That's what you'll be doing. So Israel is there under God's protection. Verse 8, after many days you will be visited. In the latter years you will come into the land of those brought back from the sword and gathered from many people on the mountains of Israel. So there we have the first sign. This is a time after the return of Jesus Christ. This is when, as we read in chapter 37 and in other places in Ezekiel and other places in Isaiah, where the people have come back. God has brought them back from the place that they were scattered at that time, brought them back to Israel. And there he says, in the latter years you will come into the land of those brought back from the sword and gathered from many people in the mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate. They were brought out of the nations, and now all of them dwell safely. They dwell safely today, far different than the land of Israel today, which doesn't dwell safely. They're always at risk. Tracy, yes. I'm getting my air conditioners on, so still make a noise. Okay, so how many fog attacks are there? One, two, or three? Well, I know there's at least two. There's the one here at the beginning of the millennium, and then in Revelation 20 we see another one at the end of the millennium.

We'll go to Revelation 20 in a little bit. So there's war with Russia, and you came places and nothing in the fog and many things, but that comes up after the millennium?

This is after the millennium. Ezekiel 38, yes. Okay, now one more thing. So at the end, you're gonna have masses and masses and masses of people. Is this people that they have gathered up? Are those people that's included in Egypt because they're not, like, gonna be happy? Or is this just, like, all Russian people? Well, Gag and Magog are those areas on the map. Well, if we Egypt, remember we are in Egypt, right? We already read about Egypt and those Middle Eastern nations. That will have been people they'll be taken care of before this, yeah.

Okay, thank you. Mr. Murray? I have a question. Yeah, Jeremy.

Sure, Jeremy, I don't see you, but you're there somewhere, so.

Yeah, so I've been confused before by idea. Like, I read, like, from just, like, in the Church of God in general, like, not necessarily, like, just some Church of God people think that, like, like the city of, like, when it says, I will put hooks in your jaws, it's talking about, like, Gag and Magog attacking the Israelite nations in World War Three, and then the city in of unwalled, I mean, the country of unwalled cities or whatever is America because Trump never built the border wall. So can you please disprove that for me? I mean, no, no, no. I mean, we've already talked about how these are all post-Christ's return verses, right? So no, this is all that. These are people that are brought back. We just read about that in chapter 37. We read about it in chapter 36. These are people that are brought back from the sword and gathered people on the mountains. So no, that is not. We'll read about the unwalled villages. There are no unwalled villages today, right? Israel itself has a dome over it. America is protected by, you know, oceans and things. This is talking about a group of people that have absolutely no defense. Their only defense, their only protection is God. They are just sitting there like people at peace with no danger around them. They don't have any kind of defense mechanisms at all. It's a totally different world than the world we live in today. Oh, so it's not talking about an actual, like, physical wall?

Yeah, on unwalled villages, meaning that, I mean, in ancient times, right, they had the walls as protection. Yeah. So these are unwalled villages. They didn't... those unwalled villages in times, you know, in ancient times, you didn't have an unwalled village, or else you were going to be attacked and you were going to be plundered. Yeah, but like today, like in America and other countries, like, you don't need that because, like, we have, like, armies protecting the borders, right? We don't have... well, remember, the time that we plow, we take our armaments and ground them into plowshares. We're talking about a future time. They are not an armed, ready-for-war people.

And we'll see how much this keeps going through it here. Okay. Yeah, Mr. Murray?

Yes, just in support of what you're saying there, Mr. Shaby, and that is the unwalled villages. Also, in that sense, they're not armed, you know, with Jesus Christ's rule on the earth. They won't... there'll be people living in peace. They won't have to have walls and they'll be living in peace. So these people from Gog and Magog, who are primarily from Eurasia, there's a mistranslation of Ethiopia and Libya. And I think even in our worldwide days, we went through that and really shows that that area of Kush, which is translated as Ethiopia by the King James, is actually India, because Kush went two different directions. After the flood, it went west and it also went east towards India. So the people of Kush are really those of India and Pakistan and the like, and Bangladesh and so on. And also, Libya is really Pakistan in that area as well. So you've got countries of Eurasia, which involve Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and also Turkmenistan and Afghanistan. These are all from that Eurasia area, including China and Russia, of course. So you've got a huge volume of people, as Mr. Shabey's pointed out, you've got a large, over half the world's population. And because there's three attacks of Gog and Magog, I'm sure Mr. Shabey would agree that the sixth trumpet is actually the counterattack. Yes, that's right. The sixth trumpet is actually a counterattack against Europe. Africa is the first whale or the fifth trumpet. It attacks, the beast actually attacks Eurasia and then the counterattack by China and Eurasia. That's the second attack. The second attack is that you're talking about now in Ezekiel 38 in the early years of the millennium. And of course, then there's the third attack at the end of the millennium. And Satan is the least recent and he stirs up Gog and Magog and other things. Okay, very good. Mart, hey, Marta, how are you? Well, thank you. One quick question. Will you be putting up that map again? I can put it up anytime you want. You want it up? It can be up there for a while. Yes, sir. Thanks. Yeah, let me see. We got Bill Bruce.

I'm just trying to get the time frame right now. I've heard it explained several different ways in the past. Now, are we saying that this you're talking about Gog and Magog and this is early on in the millennium? This is early on in the millennium, yes. Yeah, that's all. Thank you.

Okay, well, let's go on. We were in verse 8.

Yeah, okay. We were talking about these. They're coming back. They're coming against the people who have been brought back from the nations. Verse 9. You will ascend, speaking of this group, you will ascend coming like a storm. Remember how many millions of people are there? How many billions are in that area of the world today? You will ascend coming like a storm, covering the land like a cloud. You and all your troops and many peoples with you. So you have this literal invasion coming from those areas of the world into Israel. And these people are completely defenseless, as we see, right? In verse 10. Thus says the Lord God, on that day it shall come to pass that thoughts... I don't know what this is talking about, Gog and Magog again. On that day, it shall come to pass that thoughts will arise in your mind and you will make an evil plan.

I want to stop there for a moment. Brother Shami, there's someone. It's Mike who's which is on and it's echoing. So maybe... You know what? I thought I heard an echo in my voice. So let me let me stop this share for a moment so I can mute. Yeah, if we can keep our...

There we go. We can keep our mics off, except when you're talking, that would be great. So I'll put the map back up. I want to talk about thoughts come into your mind here, right? A little bit, because this is the same thing that happens to us today. Here's a people, you know, after the return of Jesus Christ, that a thought comes into their mind. Just like we don't when we receive the Holy Spirit, when we repent and we're baptized and we receive the Holy Spirit, it's not like our minds are completely purged and clean. There are still thoughts that come into our minds, and we have to guard those thoughts. We cannot allow those thoughts to take us, you know, a temptation and have it turn into a sin. We turn back to James 1 for a moment. We read about those things, and this is what happens as people in Gog and may Gog, right? A thought comes into their mind. Ah, there's this people down there. We're going to see they have some money. They have some possessions down there, and they're unwalled. We can just march in and take all that for ourselves, and they should know better, but they allow themselves to think it and think, you know, these people are like sitting ducks out there. So in James 1-12, we learn how we too have to control our thoughts. Okay, I'm going to take it. Okay. So we have to control our thoughts, too. So let's just look at James 1-12 for a moment here and remind ourselves of this. James 1-12 said, Blessed is the man who endures temptation. For when he's been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love him. Let no one say when he's tempted, or when a thought comes into our mind, oh, you know what? That looks really good. I could do this.

Why is this not me? Why is this not what I'm doing? Or, you know, why whatever it is that might have that thought that leads us down some inappropriate or evil, evil way. Let no one say when he's tempted, I'm tempted by God, for God can't be tempted by evil. His Holy Spirit—he can't be tempted because his Holy Spirit is good. And the more and more Holy Spirit that we use, that God puts in us, those things that used to tempt us don't tempt us as much anymore. You probably have all seen some of those things. The things that used to really, really get our attention just now, they just don't seem to be any problem. Don't let anyone say, when I'm tempted by God, for God can't be tempted by evil, nor does he himself tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he's brought away by his own desires and enticed. Then when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and sin when it is full grown brings forth death. And that's what happens with these people there. A thought comes into their mind. As long as you're in the New Testament, let's take a stop in 2 Corinthians. 2 Corinthians 10, when you think a thought comes into my mind, and I can't let that thought take root. It just needs to be taken away from our minds. In verse 4, well, let's end here in verse 3. 2 Corinthians 10 verse 3, Though we walk in the flesh, we don't war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty in God for bringing down strongholds. Those things that are just strong in our minds, the things that we have to let go of, those mindsets that we have.

They're mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God. We all have some of those things there. We can make excuses, excuses for what we do. We can justify what we do. All those things that we've taught brought down so that we're submitted to God. Casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God. Notice this. Bringing every thought, every thought, into captivity to the obedience of Christ. Those thoughts, those thoughts that can start off so innocently, they can come out of nowhere, just like these thoughts that come into these people's minds here in Gog and Magog. Then they find themselves marching, marching like a storm, like a cloud, covering the earth as they're coming in to conquer God's people. If we go back to chapter 38, and we see even in the millennium that happens, it doesn't mean when Christ returns that everyone has a pure mind. You and I, when we are born into spirit, when Christ returns and we're no longer immortal, He will completely purify our minds. We'll be filled with His Holy Spirit, and we won't have those temptations anymore. That's why in this life we're consistently fighting against those thoughts that come into our minds, remembering who we are, remembering who God wants us to be, and what we're here on this earth for, saying no to self. Remember when Christ talks about disciples, He says, deny yourself. Say no to yourself, and remember who you are, and choose choose His way. So if we go back to chapter 38 and verse 10, we have these people who I see a couple hands. Let me do another couple verses, and if I really have some hands up here, we'll get to you in here in a minute. Verse 11, it says, you will say, I'll go up against the land of unwalled villages. This is easy pickings, right? They don't even have any walls. They don't have any weapons. I'll go up against the land of unwalled villages.

You know, that was the defense back in those days. Today, there's weapons. Today, there's nuclear arms. Today, there are walls everywhere, even though there might not be physical walls. This is unwalled village. This is a people that is living in peace that's dependent on God.

You will say, I will go up against the land of unwalled villages. I will go to a peaceful people who dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls and having neither bars nor gates. Ah, not even bars and gates on their windows. None of that's still on their doors. They are living completely in submission to God and in complete trust that He will take care of them. That's the land. That's the world when Jesus Christ returns and when it is made a place of peace and for all of mankind. So, let me see. Do I have some hands? Yeah, Zoom user. I don't have a name for you, but Zoom user, do you have a question or comment?

If not, Xavier does. Zoom user, if you're talking, you need to turn your mic on. Xavier?

Okay. Brother Shaby, one thing with God so we have to remember is that, as it says to the Jew first and then the nations, when our Lord returns, everything starts in Jerusalem and Israel first and then spreads. So, not every nation will submit fully at first. They will be, like he said in the Old Testament, He wanted Israel to be the model nation, right? And they will be when He returns.

Yeah, very good. Zoom user. Okay, well, if you have something to say, go ahead. When you get your mic, just start talking and we'll pause for a moment. So, okay, so in verse 11, we have this very peaceful, this very peaceful land where people are living in complete peace and they're completely yielded to God and trusting in Him as His protection. And these people come and they'll say, we're going to go and we're going to conquer you. We're going to take plunder.

We're going to take booty. We're going to stretch out your hand against the waste places that are again inhabited. So, we have a land that's laid waste at the time of the Great Tribulation. We have all these wars that are going to be there. And when Christ returns, the wastelands will be re-inhabited. They will be rebuilt. And so, we see that on the time after Jesus Christ returns. The waste places that are again inhabited and against the people gathered from nations who have acquired livestock and goods who dwell in the midst of the land.

So, we have a land that has been repopulated by God's people, the nations, the physical nations of Israel. He has provided them with wealth and with food. And they have rebuilt the waste places just like we read about in Isaiah 61, where it says, you will rebuild. You will rebuild and those cities will be inhabited again. Verse 13, Sheba, Dedan, the merchants of Tarshish, and all their young lions will say to you, have you come to take plunder?

Have you gathered your army to take booty, to carry away silver and gold, to take away livestock and goods, to take free plunder? Is this why you've come? To do all those things? That is why they've come because they see that this land has again been inhabited again. It's a desirable land and they have wealth. Where did they get the wealth? Where did they get the wealth?

If we stop for a moment, let's go back to Zechariah 14. Maybe we get a clue as to where they get that wealth, that gold and silver, that the hordes of nations from Asia, Gog and Magog, that come down, they see the wealth of this nation that God has blessed. If we look in Zechariah 14, we see some verses here that are speaking of the end time and God's people. In verse 11, sometimes we're going to have to go through the book of Zechariah because there's so much in here that they just have to piece through.

Just like Ezekiel, it's a book for today as we see some of these things coming about. In verse 11 of Zechariah 14 says, the people will dwell in it, and no longer shall there be utter destruction, Jerusalem shall be safely inhabited. We're kind of in the same time frame that we're reading about here in Ezekiel 38. We drop down to verse 14. It says, Judah also will fight at Jerusalem, and the wealth of all the surrounding nations shall be gathered together, gold, silver, and apparel in great abundance.

And if you read the verses around there, you can see this is at the time of the end. You see the tremendous battle where you have the dissolving of flesh while people are still standing, and this all things. Judah will be there fighting, and somehow, whatever that verse means, you see, they gather the wealth of all those surrounding nations. Remember that God is clearing out that we read about in Ezekiel 35.

Gold, silver, and apparel in great abundance. And so here we have this chapter 39 where here we have these armies. They are seeing all this wealth. Where did it come from? Maybe just like Israel, ancient Israel, plundered ancient Egypt when they left. At that time, Israel, with all these nations around in the Middle East, they plundered them again, and they become a very wealthy nation.

Okay, so I've got Zoom user. You're ready. Okay. Can you hear me now? We can hear you, yes. Okay, my name's Kay. I want to go back to Gog for a minute. Okay. It says Gog, or the land of Magog. So is Gog a king, or are they a people? They are a people. The land of Magog. I don't remember exactly what Magog means, but Gog is...you're facing against Gog. They are the people, and maybe someone that has a better explanation than I do on this. I'm just asking because it says Gog of the land of Magog.

Yes. Yeah. So, you know, they had kings back in those days. I thought maybe Gog was a king of Magog. But anyway, that was just my question. Well, we'll find that answer out because that is a good question. So, hi, Bernice. You have to take your...open your microphone up, Bernice.

Hello. Hi. I wanted to go back to the gentleman that said that the Jews will be first.

So, at the point in time, do the Gentiles come into play? Okay. Xavier, you want to take that?

In regards to during the millennium, it would be after prices settled, Israel and Jerusalem first.

Even Egypt would have to come eventually, but at first they weren't submissive.

Okay, so then they're... Same chapter in Zachariah 14.

Okay. Verse 18. Okay, so it speaks mostly about the Jews and not the Gentiles.

In chapter 14?

In Zachariah 14 verse 18 it says, and if Egypt doesn't come up to worship, then they'll get a curse.

So, eventually they will, because there's a part that says that Egypt, Assyria, they're God's people. So, eventually they submit. Okay. But all the prosperity starts first in Jerusalem and Israel and spreads. Okay. And the Godliness first in prosperity. Thank you. Okay. Marta?

Hello again. Back in Ezekiel 38 verse 13. All right. Tarshish is mentioned. Isn't that Spain?

Tarshish is Spain, yes. It is. Okay, thank you. That's what we talked about a few times ago. Yes, I'm assuming it's the same thing here. So, yes, thank you. Okay. Okay. And Patrick, you got a question or comment?

Yeah, just a quick comment regarding Gog and Magog. Yeah. I've heard this before and I just looked it up, but Gog is the leader and Magog is the nation. Okay, there you go. Okay, I hope you're on. You heard that question. So, yeah, Gog is the leader and Magog is the land. Okay, very good. Okay.

Okay, so let me see. We were in verse. Yeah, so he's asking these questions. So, if you come to gather all this wealth from us and whatever, well, that's exactly why they came, right? They want all that loot. In verse 14, it says, then therefore, Son of Man, this is God speaking, therefore, Son of Man, prophesy and say to Gog, thus says the Lord God, on that day, when my people Israel dwell safely, will you not know it? Well, it's like, you should know this.

I am here. I have, you know, Jesus Christ is there. They should know better, but they let this thought go into their mind and they go ahead and tempt God. So he says, won't you know it? Then you will come from your place out of the far north, you and many peoples with you, all of them riding on horses, a great company and a mighty army. You will come up against my people Israel like a cloud to cover the land. It will be in the latter days that I will bring you against my land so that the nations may know me when I am hallowed in you, O Gog, before their eyes.

So again, we see this phrase that we see so often in Ezekiel. I think we saw it in Isaiah 2, but more in Ezekiel, when then they will know, then they will know that God is God. And so, you know, as God conquers nations, they know, they understand, He is God. There is no God like Him. All the gods they have, their armaments, their weapons, their air forces, mighty ships, whatever it might be, are no match for God. And here, this great cloud of army is coming, kind of like at the time of the Battle of Armageddon, where you have this 200 million man army there, and they are no match for God. Gog and Magog, they know what happened. They know what happened there at that time, when Jesus Christ completely decimated in an instant, all of those people and all those armaments were against them. And yet, they do it anyway. They again come against God. And God says He's going to conquer them. They will be another lesson. Don't fight against God. You cannot fight against God. You must yield to Him. And so, it says, the nations, I'm going to bring you against my land, that the nations know me. A lesson for all the lands. You don't fight against God. You yield to Him. You submit to Him in Him is peace, happiness, joy, all the good things of life that make life worth living and so meaningful. So that the nations know me, when I am hallowed in you, O Gog, you will see my name is holy. I do these things. There is no God like Him, that we praise, that we honor, that we worship when I am hallowed in you, O Gog, before their eyes.

And even Israel that's sitting there, as they're watching what's going on in their unwalled villages, they don't have weapons, they don't have a dome over them, they don't have nuclear armaments, they don't have tanks, they don't have anything. And they watch God. What He is going to do is He takes this horde of people and just completely decimates them. Verse 17. Verse 17, Thus says the Lord God, Are you He, whom I have spoken in former days by my serpents, the prophets of Israel, who prophesied for years in those days that I would bring you against them?

Well, it's like, are you the people that I've prophesied against before that that will come against there? Are you these people? Are you the ones who are going to challenge God?

Is what it's saying there? There's no, when I looked in the commentaries, there's no specific people mentioned there, but is this the fulfillment of this prophecy? Are you going to be the people that God says He will decimate? You're going to actually be the ones who fulfill that prophecy by going against God's people? It will come to—make sure I'm not missing something here in verses I wanted to turn to. Okay, verse 18. It will come to pass at the same time when God comes against the land of Israel that my fury will show in my face.

You don't ever want to be in a place where you see God's fury. That is a place you don't want to be. Our God is a fearsome God, it tells us in Hebrews. And so, you know, the audacity of you to come against my people, Israel, and challenge, and somehow think that you can conquer me, it's the same audacity that Satan has, that he thinks, I can go against God, I can take over anything, I'm going to be like him. And people learn the hard way. Again, you don't fight against God. You become like him, but you don't become him. You yield to him, and there's the beauty of life and the life more abundantly that Jesus Christ talks about. It'll come to pass at the same time, says the Lord God, my fury will show in my face, for in my jealousy and in the fire of my wrath I have spoken. And then he says, there will be earthquakes, there will be these things that happen there, surely that day there will be a great earthquake in the land of Israel, so that the fish of the sea, the birds of the heavens, the beasts of the field, all creeping things that creep on the earth, and all men who were on the face of the earth shall shake at my presence. How it'll be, it'll be for those, for Gog and Magog and all those people, you know, that we've talked about, they will see God, they will know Him, but God will also show His power to His people, and they will tremble at His power. Just like the people of ancient Israel, which you read about in Exodus 19 and 20, when they heard God, when they heard that Mount Sinai shake, they trembled, they realized the power of God. I'm not sure, well, I'm sure I haven't seen that power of God. You know, maybe some here have been in earthquakes, and you feel the earth shake, and you realize how unstable the earth is. You know, we've been in, you know, kind of semi hurricanes, and you feel the power of the wind, and you realize you're powerless against that, but not in a full hurricane of 150 miles an hour, or tornadoes, having been in earthquakes. But when you feel the power of God, you understand. You understand. You are absolutely helpless. If you go back to Job, and when God is revealing Himself to Job at the end and setting him straight in his mindset, all those questions he asks Job, and it's like, where were you? Where were you when you think and you realize how powerful God is and how loving He is that He is patient with us, that He is kind with us, and that He really, really works with us and wants us to have internal life. He could so easily just wipe us all out and make our lives miserable. We all deserve that. But because of His love and His mercy and His patience with us and desire, that we would all come to repentance and be part of that eternal life that He wants us to have, you appreciate Him, and you realize the power He has and that we submit to Him whatever He says we will do. So we read about these things in here, right? And here's this wrath, and God's going to display His power to His people. Then again, they are just absolutely, I think, enthralled in the right sense of the word that there's just this fear that then results in a healthy reverential fear of God. The mountains, if we go on there, the mountains shall be thrown down, the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground.

Remember, Israel has all-dwelled villages, but there must be walls around some other places as well, unless that's thinking about a wall around the yard or for sheep or whatever. Every wall shall fall to the ground. Verse 21. Verse 21, I will call for a sword against God throughout all my mountains, all my areas, God says. Every man's sword will be against his brother. They've got all this going on here. And I will bring him to judgment with pestilence and bloodshed. I will rain down on him, on his troops, and on the many peoples who are with him, flooding rain, great hailstones, fire, and brimstone. As God shows his power and he stops that army, I will magnify myself and sanctify myself, and I will be known in the eyes of many nations. The whole world will take notice. What is Gog and Magog doing? What are they doing? And look at the example they set. Why, when you see that example, would you ever go against God?

It's kind of reminiscent of what Gog does in Back with Israel, again, where in that time of Passover, if you're going through the Bible reading program that we have in Exodus, you'll come on later to, well, I guess you go through the plague. Then later on, you see where God talks about, you know, you get into Exodus 16, for instance, there's a man out there gathering sticks on the Sabbath day. And as they find him doing those things, which was contrary to God's will, you don't do that on the Sabbath. You prepare for the Sabbath and you keep the Sabbath holy, and they're told that man must die. That man must die. And it seems like a very harsh sentence for what would seem to us a very minor infraction. But God is making a purpose there. He's making a statement there. And all Israel watched. And you better believe that the next time they thought about going out and picking up sticks on the Sabbath, they thought about that because God enforces His law. And too many times in our lives, you know, we just allow little things to go go by. And, you know, God doesn't instantly strike us down. He doesn't instantly throw a make us hurt or whatever. But we have to learn to discipline ourselves with our with our, you know, with the Holy Spirit. Don't do the things God says not to do.

And I could go on. I'm going off on a tangent here anyway. But we have to discipline ourselves to do things the way God says to do, you know, says to do it and hold ourselves accountable to that and not compromise with what He does, what He says to do. So we come to the end of chapter 38, and it's going to continue into chapter 39 here. But He says, again, God says, I will magnify myself. I will sanctify myself. He's set apart from everyone else. He is larger than anything we know. His thoughts are higher than our thoughts, weighs higher than our ways. His will, you know, is where we go, not over our will. And I will be known in the eyes of many nations. Then they shall know that I am the Lord. They get it. You cannot compete with God.

So let's, let me see, I was going to go back to Revelation 20, but let's just go ahead and go continue into chapter 39 here for the next few verses and kind of see what happens with Gog and Magog. Verse 1, it says, And you, Son of Magog, or you, Son of Man, prophesy against Gog, and say, Thus says the Lord Gog, God, behold, here we go again, I am against you, O Gog, the Prince of Rosh, Meshach, and Tubal, I will turn you around, and I will lead you on, bringing you up from the far north, and bring you against the mountains of Israel. Here we are. Like, this is what's going to happen. It's in your heart, and this is, you will become the example, the example for the rest of the nations. Then I will knock the bow out of your hand, out of your left hand, and cause the arrows to fall out of your right hand. You shall fall upon the mountains of Israel, you and all your troops and the peoples who are with you. I will give you to birds of prey of every sort, and to the beasts of the field to be devoured. Gonna be with that many millions of people who are going to die. To die on that, you know, die in that time. Just think of the carnage that's out there. Think of the weapons that they're bringing with them, and what they're...because they didn't come just to do hand battle. They are coming with something to fight against Israel, but God ends it all. He stops them before they get there. All these people are with you. I'll give you the birds of prey, reminiscent of when you read in Revelation 19 when Jesus Christ is returning, and he talks about the birds are going to feed. The weeds are going to feed on you. If you look at Revelation 19, and that's what happens when people die in mass here. Verse 5, You shall fall on the open field, for I have spoken, says the Lord God, I will send fire on Magog and on those who live in the coastlands. And this is an interesting, interesting thing.

I will send fire on Magog. They're the ones who God says my face is against, but I'll also send it on those who live in security in the coastlands. When you look at the commentaries, not necessarily our UCG Bible commentary that doesn't have a specific comment on that verse, it's like these are people who may live outside God, but who have the sentiments of God. So you might have people who are living in safe places, but we really do think like Magog. We really would like to see Israel conquered, kind of like what we have in America, maybe in Canada and the other nations we have with us tonight too, where you have these these pro-Palestinian protests are on there. It's like, well, that's just not what the nation does, right? And they're kind of there. They're living in one nation that is pro-Israel, but they're pro-Palestinian and whatever. So where those elements are, God sees what's in the heart. God sees what's in the heart, and it says, those who live in security in the coastlands, they will feel that as well. And he says in verse 6, then they'll know that I am the eternal. So I will make my holy name known in the midst of my people Israel. Again, maybe a reminder, they've already seen, you know, God, Jesus Christ returned. They've seen the power that he has as those armies. They've seen him bring them back to the Promised Land. And here they see his power again as he protects them from an army that's coming against them. I'll make my name known in the midst of my people Israel, and I will not let them profane my holy name anymore. This is that anymore word is one of the key verses that let us know that this is near the beginning of the millennium, because it was at the end of the millennium, anymore wouldn't be there. This is still something that's out there. They won't profane my holy name anymore. It's done. Maybe there were even some in Israel who, even as they got a little comfortable, were thinking of whatever they were thinking, right, as we as humans do, that, you know, well, God this or God that or whatever. Oh, they'll know. And he says that they'll know my power, and I'll be known in the midst of my people, and they won't profane my name anymore. Then the nation shall know that I am the Lord, the Holy One in Israel. Over and over, then they shall know, and it's my power and might that God, that we see that He is invincible. Surely it's coming, he says, and it shall be done, says the Lord God, that this is the day of which I have spoken, that those who dwell in the cities of Israel, and here's the carnage that's there, then those who dwell in the cities of Israel will go out and set on fire and burn the weapons, both the shields and bucklers, the bows and arrows, the javelins and spears, and they will make fires with them for seven years. You see the magnitude of what was coming against them, the magnitude of the people that were coming against them, and also the instruments that they were bringing with them as well, the instruments of the warfare. For seven years, that will be fuel for them to warn them. They will make fires with them for seven years. They won't take wood from the field or cut down any from the forests, because they will make fires with the weapons, and they will plunder those who plundered them.

They came, Gog and Magog and all those hordes of people that we see on this map that's in front of you there. They will come, and their purpose is to plunder Israel, but in return, instead, Gog will see that Israel plunders them. A kind of reminder of the Esther in Haman, in the book of Esther, where he plans to have all of the Jews have Mordecai hung, and all the Jews be wiped out as part of his plot. But Gog and Esther, in a moment in time where she went to the king and Gog showed her favor, and then Haman instead ended up losing his life. Gog has a way of doing that and rescuing his people from those who would fight against him and fight against them.

Faith. That faith is what we have here. They will plunder those who would have plundered them and pillage those who pillaged them. We're going to stop here in verse let's read one more verse, and then we will stop there. We'll go back to Revelation 20 here for a couple minutes and show the difference between this Gog and Magog at the beginning of the millennium and the Revelation 20 at the end. Verse 10 there, verse 11, it'll come to pass in that day that I will give Gog a burial place there in Israel, the valley of those who pass by east of the sea, and it will obstruct travelers because there they will bury Gog in all his multitude. They will call it the Valley of Haman, Gog, as we read verse 12, for seven months the house of Israel will be burying them in order to cleanse the land.

So we have all these...are you seeing Avast up there? Okay. Anyway, so let's stop there because then we'll finish chapter 39 next week and get into chapter 40 that's talking about the temple.

All these things lead up to chapter 40, and then the rest of the book of Ezekiel is talking about that temple and the detail that's involved in it. That's where people will flow. When you read Isaiah 2, it'll be, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, there he will teach us his ways.

And the people come to that temple to be taught God's ways. Just as Xavier was saying earlier, Israel, through Israel, people learn. They are the model nation through which the rest of the world will learn God's way and learn how good and how gracious and benevolent and gracious he is. So before we go to Revelation 20, any questions or any comments on anything that anyone wants to talk about? I'll take down the map for a minute. Yeah, Jim. Yeah, hi Mr. Shaby. Hello. I really appreciate your keeping up your Bible studies because I so look forward to them. But I have a question, not a question so much, but I wanted to get your thoughts on chapter 39 and verse 9 there, which you that you just read in regards to it appears to me that we're witnessing nuclear devastations throughout the whole world here because these people come down with sticks and rakes and whatever they could find because they're burning this stuff for endless amount of time. So it speaks to me, at least I don't know what your thoughts are on it, but it speaks to me as to the severity of the infrastructure that has been destroyed at this time. Because at verse 9 we have all these more primitive weapons, right? We don't have a nuclear bomb that they can drop with Israel. They're having to go back to the javelins and spears of old days that they've actioned for themselves. Yeah, I think that's what it's showing there, right?

All those armaments are gone. So we don't read about bullets and rifles and tanks. We read about these other things. Wait, so now I'm confused. You're telling me that when it talks about that, it's not talking about the second Gog and Magog, where it's like a peaceful place and then they make weapons and then attack the holy city? No, that is what we're talking about. Gog and Magog that's their weapons. So we're saying that they don't have tanks and nuclear weapons? Yeah, there's something they don't have. They don't have the weapons we have today. They have more primitive weapons at that time. Oh, because talking about the peaceful time when there is no weapons?

No nuclear weapons, armaments, and whatever we have javelins and spears, bows and arrows, shields and bucklers. Okay. Daryl, hi. Hello. I know during when we go to the Feast of Tabernacles, we have this verse that says they will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning herbs. Micah, Micah Ford basically says the same thing, but it has a little that it has added on that I think is really kind of relevant to this. It says, he shall judge between many people and rebuke strong nations afar off. They shall beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks. But he shows here that they rebuke. In other words, it isn't just going to be they're going to give up their swords and their plowshares. He's going to have to do some heavy work against them. He's going to have to rebuke them. And who does he rebuke? It's strong nations afar off. If I look at strong nations afar off today, I think of Raishah. I think of China.

Those are the strong nations. And if you look at the mentality of the people that go down in there, why did they do it? Because they see, oh, this is an easy group of people to conquer because there's no walls. I look at Raishah and the invasion of Ukraine. And I look at China, ready to go into Taiwan. I look at Iran as they're the ones that are backing those that are going into Israel. And Persia is Iran. So all three of those have that mentality. If there's somebody that's got something and I can get it, I'm going to go after it. So I truly believe this might be for verse three is looking at that. I don't have a reason to disagree with you. We're seeing, right? There are all those nations afar off. They haven't become like Israel. They're still warlike and they let these thoughts come into their minds. It's a good observation. Very good.

Hey, bud. How are you tonight? Good. Great talk with study. We're back through the comments very, very early. They're not involved as far as the people and where they came from and God. The thing that I want to talk about, though, is verse 38.

Well, chapter 38, it says, then you will come from your place out of the far north. You and many peoples with you, all of them riding on horses. It really has to be symbolism. I can't visualize all of them riding on. I don't think any of us. So it has to be symbolism. If we go to 39 verses nine through ten, I have burned the wood from the weapons. It has to be symbolism, too, because I don't see involved in modern weapons. I don't think any of us do. So put your comments on that symbolism, right? Do you think that's what it is? Honestly, I always took that literally.

I never really thought of it as symbolism. I always just took it literally. The horses, there weren't going to be all the tanks and all those armaments at that time, and they would be coming that way. All those weapons, I just always took it. The weapons of warfare, the major things are gone, and they had to craft their own. But I may be, you know, if there's other thoughts on that, be happy to hear what other people think. I just never thought of it in that way before.

Well, we watch a lot of the YouTube where we see you. We haven't seen you for a while, by the way. You'll see one this Friday, so yeah. Great, great. Anyway, enjoy them.

Anyway, the weapons that you see are not wood, and the weapons being used are not horses.

It's hard to visualize how I'm going back to that method of warfare. To me, it is, okay? Yep. You know what? We will find out. We will find out then. But it does say here about Israel, they will make fires with them for seven years, so they are burnable weapons, so unless that's some kind of symbolism as well. Okay, very good. Okay.

Jim and Leah Patton.

Hi there. Thank you for doing this. The Bible studies really have been appreciating them. And anyways, just a little comment or thought. Really, obviously, you're going to go on to Revelation 20, I take it? Yes. Revelation 20 verse 7 is about Gog and Magog, and perhaps a second coming of Gog and Magog. Just looking at Zechariah 12, when this is kind of where the people go up against Jerusalem, I think it could make sense that Zechariah 12 and Christ's coming definitely deals with the technology of the world. His return is this kind of catastrophic thing for the nations around.

And so by the time you get to Zechariah 14 or Ezekiel 39, then you're kind of dealing with the remnants of the resistance to Christ's rule, where peace is going out from Jerusalem, but peace is not far away yet. And so the learning of war is still in these far-off nations.

And so, you know, the law will go out to the isles from Jerusalem. And so obviously, to me, it feels like there's a time period. God doesn't do things in a magical way.

There's always like a time period, everything it's time and season. So that's kind of just my little thought that there's kind of an order of operations between Israel, Christ returning, Jerusalem, and Judah kind of being like David and defeating those who have come up to fight against Christ in his immediate return. And then this transition from peace in Jerusalem, spreading to the people that are far off, hearing it, the law going out to them, being rebuked, and then the response to that. And then obviously, you have this long period of peace before Satan is released, and then God can make God kind of return.

Yes. Yeah, I mean, again, it makes sense. No, it makes sense. It makes sense. And you're exactly right. God doesn't just switch the flip, right? It's a learning process throughout our lives to become like him and put these things away. And that's, I think, a lot of what you're saying is a learning process in the millennium, too. It just doesn't become perfectly peaceful overnight. There's a process of learning God's way, just like we go through today. But it'll be the whole world that is learning that. And as we see these things like we know what God does with Goggin and Maybach, that's a pretty, pretty strong learning for the world when they see that happen.

What time do we have here? Let's look at Revelation 20 just real quick here.

I'll just point out one thing. We can go through this a little bit more next week if we want to. But just to show the difference between it, that these are two different events. In verse 7 it says, Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison. So we have this time that Satan's been bound, but then he goes out and shows how powerful his influence is. That after a thousand years of peace, the people who have been living at that time have been living in peace, prosperity, happiness, joy, and then Satan comes. There a little Garden of Eden, just like Adam and Eve, and he's able to influence people to go against God, just so how powerful it is and how invaluable the Holy Spirit is to us to be able to resist him. So Satan is released, and he will go out to deceive the nations, notice which are in the four corners of the earth.

What we see in the first part of where we were in Ezekiel 38, they're all coming from that area of the world, the Gog and Magog, the Russia, Meshach, Tubal, that area of the earth. But here they are in the four corners of the earth to gather them together to battle, whose number is as of the sand of the sea. And so there's the difference there. I'll talk about more of that time. I don't want to keep people too long here tonight, but there's one of the differences in there clearly at the end of the resurrection or the end of the millennium where we were reading tonight was closer to the beginning. So let me leave it at that, unless someone has something else you want to talk about. Is the second Gog and Magog war—I'm so confused about this—is it at the very end of the millennium? Or is it after the second resurrection and then the hundred years is finished and then there's the final war? No. In verse 7 of chapter 20 there in Revelation, when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison. So it's right at the end of that. Does that war include everyone ever born and raised in the thousand period? Or is it just the people in the last hundred years period of the millennium? It's the people who are alive at that time. So you're throwing in a hundred years. We don't know exactly what that Isaiah 65 refers to, but it's everyone who's alive at that time. It's not everyone who's literally the element that lives—the people alive at that time. Oh, okay. But the reason why it says Santa the seashore is because since no one's dying of illnesses or anything, there'll just constantly be a huge population like never seen them before. Well, yeah. Remember, God says we've read the verses back there where he talks about Israel. When he brings them back, they will be very fruitful. He says he will fill the land. He will fill the land with descendants. People will be fruitful again, and they will populate the earth. And so, yeah, we will have a world at the end of a thousand years that is populated everywhere. It will be full of people. What God said be fruitful and multiply, that'll happen during the millennium as well. All right. Thank you. I saw a hand. Yeah, Xavier. Hi. Well, the Shabbi, in Genesis, I don't remember where it tells us whose Magog is off Japhet. If everybody will, with God's help, read slowly Japhet's children, who they are.

I think that's Genesis 10, right? Genesis 10 gives all that genealogy. Yeah, in fact, I'm going to get it right now. Genesis 10, verse 2, has Javen, Tubal, Meshach. Magog is right there in verse 2 of Genesis 10 as well. So that's the grandchildren of them right there, the sons of Jason. Very enlightening. It says even that Japhet's one of his sons will dwell in Shem's debt.

Yep. Berta, do you have a question? You'll have to turn your microphone on, Berta.

I'm talking to me. I don't have my hand up. I don't know Berta. I think she's trying to turn a microphone on. Okay. Anything? Okay. There she is. Have you figured it out, Berta? It's down. If you're on a laptop, it's down at the bottom left-hand corner of your microphone.

Okay. If you look at 1st Chronicles 5.4, that is the first time that it's mentioned, Grog.

And if it's the same one, will it be a descendant or Reuben?

Are you in 1st Chronicles? 1st Chronicles 5.4. Is this the family of Reuben? Yes. I'm looking at that because I'm looking at Genesis 10 as well. Magog is mentioned there. 1st Chronicles 5.4. Right. It mentions the son of Chemin, Grog, his son Chemi, and his son Micah. And he's also descendant Joel. I don't know if that Joel is the same one of the book. This is later on in the genealogy, so I think that's a different one. I think if we look at Genesis 10, it's the sons of Japheth, and that's where Magog is.

This would be hundreds of years later, so that would be a different Gog that just has the name. They have the readers of Chronicles. Yeah, so we can look at that. I recognize Chemi. He's the one who always taunted David.

We could look that up. I'll see what that lineage is. We look back at Genesis 10 as the genealogy of the nations. As you trace those through the true history, you can see where these people listed here are. I couldn't find Magog before. We're all related. We're all from Adam and Eve. We all came from Adam and Eve here. That's right. We would remember that, that we're all family. Maybe that would cut down on some of the problems we have, right?

The rebellious, that is him and, I guess. Yeah, that's one of the things we have to weed out of our lives, exactly. Hey, Bernice. Hi, Bernice.

Microphone.

Okay, so you said Genesis 10? Yes.

But in the beginning, it says that these are the generations of Noah. Right. Shem, Ham, and Japheth are his sons, right? They are the continuation.

So then Magog is the sons of Japheth?

Japheth, yes. Sons of Japheth were Gomer. We talked about him, right? That was on the map. I'll pull that map back up and you can see it.

Right there, Eastern Europe, you know, they call Gomer. He's right there. Javen, Tubal, Tubal. We've got Tubal up there somewhere. At least I thought we did. So there's another map I have that has Tubal on it. Meshach, we talked about being like Moscow, right? And things like that. So yeah. And then we talked like, if you look down the sons of Ham, Kush. Kush is there. Ethiopia, Put, Libya. Yeah, so I mean, this is kind of seen as the beginning of the nations of the world. Of course, they've spread out over times. And as they've been traced as to where they've gone in the various areas of the world. So okay. I had a question, another question.

Okay. When it says that I will enlarge Japheth, is that talking about a prophecy where he'll make them exceedingly fruitful? For example, throughout the history of mankind, and even now, at one point, India had one-fourth of the world's population. And now India and China and all the East Asian countries combined cover like, I don't know how much of the world's population, but it's a huge amount. Yeah, when God says he's going to enlarge, that's what that means.

Those areas of the world have enormous populations. Okay, so it was a blessing that they would have lots of children then? It would be a blessing. Yes, God has blessed us richly. Those nations haven't been blessed physically as much as modern Israel has, but yes, they certainly have been fruitful. Okay. And so was Israel, by the way, right? I mean, it's only been in recent years that the population of modern day is the Israelite nations have gone down. They have always been very populous. So, let me say, I got, I don't know, Bernice, do you have another question, or is your hand up from before? I do. I have another question. Okay. When this happened, there's no mention of, like, the United States nation.

Well, there is. You probably don't have the booklet. You should go online and look at the United States and Britain in prophecy, and it will give you a lot of history of where the scattered tribes of Israel have gone. And we can talk about that later, but yeah, you might go online and look at that book. I know you're, I think you're newer, but I think if you look at that and then come back with some questions, that will answer a lot of your questions. Because, yes, the United States, Britain, Canada, Australia, they are all mentioned in the Bible under the name of Israel when you see where the descendants of Israel are in the world today. Okay. Okay.

Hey, Bill. Yes, hello, Mr. Shavey, and hello, everybody. What's exciting to me while we read all these things about Gog and Magog and the events that are happening in Israel in that day, they're all talking about in the millennium. And it seems amazing to think that when the people are changed to spirit beings, hopefully we'll all be, we are going to be watching these things. And I don't know how we are participating in them, or if we are. We're watching these events happening from a different perspective than we would have now. So to watch God in action, so to speak, be a part of what he tells us about in Isaiah 30, how we're going to be teachers, we're going to be priests in that day. This is a wonderful thing to think of what God is doing like above, but we're down here on the earth, if you will, as spirit beings, working with people.

And will we just be working with Israel's, or will we be working with Gentiles, or both, or however that would tell us. That's so exciting to keep in mind where we're going, that we're all going to have a participating part in this, won't we?

We'll have a part. That's why we have to be learning a lot today. And that's why God calls people from all nations. When he says, make people disciples of all nations, they will be able to understand, as those people live in those areas, what they've been through, what their culture has been to help them unlearn what they need to unlearn and learn God's way too. So, yeah, it will be, it will be, and we'll still be learning through all that time too. It's not like we know it all. We're learning a lot from Christ as we go through that process.

Hey, Nancy Stevens, I see you down there in the corner of my screen here. So, hi.

And many others. I should say hi to everyone and not just, I see.

Okay, okay. Is that it? Okay, Bill Bruce, you got a question or comment.

Well, I've got a comment. A while back, I remember you were talking about being, I think, in Africa, and you were told that as people move further and further away from God, the guy there told you that they we'd have more demon possession.

Yeah.

Well, have you seen the governor from Maine?

I've heard some of her comments. I haven't seen her necessarily, but just heard some of the things she's saying. I mean, there's something wrong with that woman. She thinks that females should have to compete with men, and she's fighting the president on that. Yeah. I'll see you in court. I mean, she's just defiant, I think, right? Some people are just like, whatever you say, they're going to say the opposite. So, yeah, she's interesting.

Yep. Hey, Doug.

Doug, you got the floor if you want it.

You have your microphone on, it looks like. We just can't hear you, so.

Okay.

Brandon, did you have something you want to say? We'll get back to Doug in a minute. Hello, Mr. Chairman. Hello, everyone. I was just curious, did you happen to see about Charlene passing away?

Ah, yeah, we did. Yeah, we did. I should have said that, too. Charlene's been on the Bible study for years, too. She did pass away this week, right? Was it so? Yeah, three days ago. Yeah, just a few days ago.

Yeah, it was on, I think the email read that it was 11-30 Sabbath morning. That's morning, I was thinking it was Sabbath, yeah. Yeah, she's in the Jacksonville, Florida church, so very nice, very nice lady, so.

Okay.

Hey, Doug, we see you now.

We can't hear you, but we can see you. Okay, well, we'll work on your microphone. Evelyn, hi. You got to turn your microphone on, Evelyn.

Mr. Shabie, since you were mentioning so many prayer requests at the beginning, could we remember Mr. Erickson's wife, Tanya? She fell on the ice here, probably almost a month ago. Now, she already has MS, and she fell on the ice and broke her shoulder bone and has a bad concussion, so she has to be in the dark all the time.

And would you just please remember her, please? Yeah, everyone. Tanya, Tanya Erickson, Mike Erickson's wife? She was Tanya Spears before. She came from, was it North Carolina?

Oh, okay. I didn't know that. Okay, okay, yeah, we will. We will remind Tanya in our prayers. Thank you. Thank you for letting us know that. So, okay, Doug, one more time.

Okay, we will, we'll catch you next week, Doug. Have someone look at your microphone so we can hear you, and we'll get your question next week, then. So, okay, it's like, it's like 8 30, so let's call it, let's call it a night. It's been absolutely great to be with all of you. We will see some of you in Cincinnati on Sabbath. The rest of you have a wonderful Sabbath, and next week we will have Bible-ending on Wednesday, on the Wednesday night. Okay, bye. Bye, everybody.